| Diana Rigg--Two "Lost" Movies ("...Mrs. Peel, We're Needed") | |
| Posted by: | Shakespeare_in_the_Dark (shakespeareinthedark@gmail.com) 09:21 pm EDT 04/02/14 |
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| Diana Rigg, or rather, DAME Diana Rigg, has been a leading star of the stage for nearly half-a-century. But in the 1960s, she set trends (and heads a'poppin'), when she played Mrs. Emma Peel, in the quixotic fantasy and spy series, THE AVENGERS, co-starring Patrick (SLEUTH) Macnee. Rigg's portrayal of an independent, self-sufficient (complete with karate chops), brilliant, elegant and WITTY woman of the era was an absolute pop cultural sensation, one which many view as iconic, and which still reverberates. That fame, and legacy, is even more remarkable, when one realizes that Rigg only starred on the show for two seasons, before returning to the stage, and commencing a film career (including one of my favorite versions of A MIDSUMMER NIGHT'S DREAM, in 1969, featuring David Warner, Judi Dench, and Ian Holm.) Intriguingly, even though THE AVENGERS had even greater success when it ran here on the ABC television network in America, and through the 1970s in syndication, Rigg never really essayed that type of role again, or at least revisited her particular brand of insouciant derring-do. (In a recent interview, Rigg mentioned that director Peter Hall told her she was wasting her talents when she signed for the espionage series. But the Royal Shakespeare Company was VERY grateful when her AVENGERS derived celebrity helped sell many tickets!) ALL of which makes it all the more remarkable to discover that in the later '60s-- ON HER OWN-- Rigg made two mini-movies, where she essentially again played her most famous character-- Films which have been relatively unknown, until recently! (The article enclosed below links to the two "Lost Riggs." Also revealed is the rather dirty deed two of THE AVENGERS' producers perpetrated upon her, or at least her celluloid personna, just a relatively few years later.) Is it unusual for such a celebrated actress to have work that has remained known to only the most devoted of fans? For those who may never have seen the series, or Rigg's in many ways unparalleled inspiration, the piece also includes, at its end, a lovely video tribute... | |
| Link | Mrs. Peel, We're Needed |
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| And how great is this ... | |
| Posted by: | jdm (Evil Under the Sun) 08:22 am EDT 04/03/14 |
| In reply to: | Diana Rigg--Two "Lost" Movies ("...Mrs. Peel, We're Needed") - Shakespeare_in_the_Dark 09:21 pm EDT 04/02/14 |
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| from Evil Under the Sun - Diana Rigg and Maggie Smith, "You're the Top"!! Jim | |
| Link | http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dvGgaaRjzdE |
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| re: And how great is this ... | |
| Posted by: | hitbycab 10:39 am EDT 04/03/14 |
| In reply to: | And how great is this ... - jdm 08:22 am EDT 04/03/14 |
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| I worship at the feet of Emma Peel I LOVE this scene from EVIL | |
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| re: Diana Rigg--Two "Lost" Movies ("...Mrs. Peel, We're Needed") | |
| Posted by: | PlayWiz 12:23 am EDT 04/03/14 |
| In reply to: | Diana Rigg--Two "Lost" Movies ("...Mrs. Peel, We're Needed") - Shakespeare_in_the_Dark 09:21 pm EDT 04/02/14 |
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| Well she did play Mrs. James Bond in "On Her Majesty's Secret Service" (the one with George Lazenby as Bond), and she certainly was a good match for the character of James Bond. If I recall, that was actually a very good film with some great skiing footage as well. | |
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| re: Diana Rigg--Two "Lost" Movies ("...Mrs. Peel, We're Needed") | |
| Posted by: | Shakespeare_in_the_Dark 12:41 pm EDT 04/03/14 |
| In reply to: | re: Diana Rigg--Two "Lost" Movies ("...Mrs. Peel, We're Needed") - PlayWiz 12:23 am EDT 04/03/14 |
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| Actually, PW... No doubt what the producers had in mind, but Rigg came up with an entirely different kind of characterization. (Ultimately, she may have bee' miscast: the novel called for an Italian firebrand, and the original pairing was hoped to have been for Connery and Bridgit Bardot!) But, a terrific film and the last to be based strictly on a Fleming book. Hey, to bring this back on topic, there was actually an AVENGERS stage play on the West End in 1971, starring Simom Oates as Steed, Sue Lloyd as a new companion, and the just-passed Kate O'Mara as the villainous mastermind. (By the way, what prompted the original linked article was the debut of the series at the end of February on the national Cozi TV, every afternoon at one. They're up 3( the season co-starring a future theatre vet, a very young Linda Thorson. Through no fault of her own, that season has an extremely different feel than the rest of the series, but still a good chance to see many long time British theatre folk, and another reminder to "...always keep your bowler on, in times of trouble." ;-) | |
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| re: Diana Rigg--Two "Lost" Movies ("...Mrs. Peel, We're Needed") | |
| Posted by: | wmdmcree 09:30 pm EDT 04/02/14 |
| In reply to: | Diana Rigg--Two "Lost" Movies ("...Mrs. Peel, We're Needed") - Shakespeare_in_the_Dark 09:21 pm EDT 04/02/14 |
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| She was the most beautiful, sexiest woman in the world for this teenager. | |
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| re: Diana Rigg--Two "Lost" Movies ("...Mrs. Peel, We're Needed") | |
| Posted by: | Dalmaniac 02:08 am EDT 04/03/14 |
| In reply to: | re: Diana Rigg--Two "Lost" Movies ("...Mrs. Peel, We're Needed") - wmdmcree 09:30 pm EDT 04/02/14 |
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| "She was the most beautiful, sexiest woman in the world for this teenager" I'll second that. And what a thrill to fly to London and see her live on stage, sitting in a crescent moon in the nude, singing "Shine On Harvest Moon" in Stoppard's "Jumpers". Apotheosis! | |
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| re: Diana Rigg--Two "Lost" Movies ("...Mrs. Peel, We're Needed") | |
| Posted by: | wmdmcree 04:47 am EDT 04/03/14 |
| In reply to: | re: Diana Rigg--Two "Lost" Movies ("...Mrs. Peel, We're Needed") - Dalmaniac 02:08 am EDT 04/03/14 |
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| My thrill was seeing her on the West End doing the bubble dance to "Ah, But Underneath" that Sondheim wrote for the London production of "Follies" (not to mention her other great stage work - it's just that the combination of seeing "Follies" and her at the same time was pretty overwhelming!). | |
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| re: Diana Rigg--Two "Lost" Movies ("...Mrs. Peel, We're Needed") | |
| Posted by: | Dalmaniac 04:59 am EDT 04/03/14 |
| In reply to: | re: Diana Rigg--Two "Lost" Movies ("...Mrs. Peel, We're Needed") - wmdmcree 04:47 am EDT 04/03/14 |
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| Yes...wmdcree. It saw that too and adored it (Eartha Kitt's delivery of the line "That's moxie!'" added to the thrill). Dame Diana was also a great raconteur on shows like Parkinson...and long may she thrive! | |
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| re: Diana Rigg--Two "Lost" Movies ("...Mrs. Peel, We're Needed") | |
| Posted by: | counterweight 09:56 pm EDT 04/02/14 |
| In reply to: | re: Diana Rigg--Two "Lost" Movies ("...Mrs. Peel, We're Needed") - wmdmcree 09:30 pm EDT 04/02/14 |
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| Speaking of the RSC appreciating her Avengers-derived celebrity: I went to see The Misanthrope in 1975 at the St. James Theater specifically because "Mrs. Peel" was in it. She was spectacular! | |
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